Bengkalis Police Name One Suspect in Forest Fire and Illegal Encroachment Case

Bengkalis Police have named a man with the initials YS (58) as a suspect in a case of forest and land fires (Karhutla) and illegal occupation of forest areas. YS was arrested after burning 1.5 hectares of land in Pematang Pudu Urban Village, Mandau District, Bengkalis Regency.

“YS’s status was elevated to suspect through a case review mechanism on Friday, 28 August 2026,” said Bengkalis Police Chief AKBP Fahrian Saleh Siregar in his statement on Saturday (29/8/2026).

The land fire was first detected on Tuesday, 14 July 2026 at 12.00 WIB on Jalan Tegar Kanal Atiam RT 005/RW 017, Pematang Pudu Urban Village, Mandau District. The team conducted an investigation and checked the coordinate points in the field.

“It was found that the burned area is within a Limited Production Forest (HPT) zone. On the land, we discovered plantation activity and the illegal planting of oil palm seedlings,” he explained.

The suspect is known to have not only burned the land but also encroached on approximately 6 hectares. Of that, 1.5 hectares had been cleared for oil palm planting.

In addition to securing the suspect, investigators also seized a number of pieces of evidence, including one sharpening stone, a burned oil palm trunk, and two mobile phones belonging to the suspect.

For his actions, YS is charged with multiple articles related to forest destruction and occupation of areas without a permit as stipulated in Article 78 paragraph (2) in conjunction with Article 50 paragraph (3) letter a of Law No. 41 of 1999 on Forestry, as amended by Law No. 6 of 2023 on Job Creation.

He is also charged under Article 92 paragraph (1) letter a in conjunction with Article 17 paragraph (2) letter b of Law No. 18 of 2013 on Prevention and Eradication of Forest Destruction, as amended by Law No. 6 of 2023 on Job Creation.

Investigators from the Bengkalis Police Criminal Investigation Unit are currently completing the investigation administration, sending the Notice of Commencement of Investigation (SPDP) to the District Prosecutor’s Office, and coordinating with forensic laboratory experts and plantation experts to finalise the case file.